Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. Trims Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. decreased its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 53,264 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 782 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 1.7% of Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $48,805,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in COST. AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at $42,896,000. Czech National Bank grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.9% during the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 90,312 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $80,063,000 after buying an additional 5,799 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.2% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,661 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,905,000 after purchasing an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 7,631 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,765,000 after buying an additional 403 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everpar Advisors LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.3% during the third quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC now owns 539 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $478,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $880.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective on the stock. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $1,065.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,005.83 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $954.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $908.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a market capitalization of $446.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.06, a P/E/G ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $697.27 and a 52-week high of $1,009.61.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.25%.

Costco Wholesale Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, Korea, Australia, Taiwan, China, Spain, France, Iceland, New Zealand, and Sweden. The company offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories.